How to use 以后；然后；后来
Event + 以后; action 1，然后 + action 2; past situation，后来 + development
以后, 然后, and 后来 all involve later time, but they organize sentences differently. 以后 can follow an event or time to mean after it, or stand alone for the future. 然后 moves an account or plan to its next step. 后来 introduces a subsequent development in a past narrative, often after some earlier situation has already been established.
Use 然后 when sequencing actions, whether those actions belong to a story or a future plan. Use 后来 when looking back at how a situation developed, rather than appending it directly to an event as an after phrase. Choosing the reference point and viewpoint first helps avoid translating every occurrence of English later with the same Chinese word.
Examples with pinyin and English
我们先复习一下， 然后上新课。
Let's do some review first and then study a new lesson.
我以后想开公司。
I want to start up my own business in the future.
毕业以后他出国了。
He went abroad after he graduated.
他在我们公司干过两年， 后来跳槽了。
He worked for our company for two years, and then he jumped ship.
What to remember
- Use 然后 to advance a sequence.
- Use 后来 for a later past development.
- Use 以后 after an event or for future time.
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Source and editorial notes
Explanation rewritten for Laowai. Examples are adapted from the Laowai English grammar curriculum, with editorial corrections where needed. The original curriculum credits AllSet Learning’s Chinese Grammar Wiki as used with permission. Read the retained source credits.
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